Climate & Environment

System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA)

Meaning statusEstablishedSource recordDirect source requestedWhy these are different

Definition

The System of Environmental-Economic Accounting is the international statistical standard, adopted by the UN Statistical Commission, for organising environmental and economic information in a single integrated framework consistent with the System of National Accounts. The SEEA Central Framework (2012) covers physical flows (energy, water, materials), environmental assets (timber, fish, minerals, water) and environmental protection expenditure; the SEEA Ecosystem Accounting extension (2021) adds ecosystem extent, condition and services, enabling natural capital to be measured in the same grammar as GDP.

References

www.worldbank.orgBulk import source

This reference provides supporting context for how “System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA)” is defined and used.

seea.un.orgBulk import source

Source imported for editorial provenance.

Overview

How it is used

The standard structures national statistics office environmental accounts, natural capital accounting pilots (World Bank WAVES legacy), and the integration of ecosystem services into policy appraisal.

Why it matters

Economies run on accounts; SEEA is how nature finally gets entered into the books.